How to calm down INSTANTLY

Your mind is racing with all you need to do.  Your thoughts are often future focused on what could happen.  Sometimes these thoughts are just thoughts, other times they’re quite negative.  Your body feels tense.  You notice your stomach is pulled in and you’re not breathing right.  There’s tension around your throat and shoulders.  You’re not even focused on what’s happening around you. You’re totally in your own head.  Someone taps your shoulder and you startle.

Is this you?

Our lives are full of a lot of stuff happening.  More than likely, you’ve felt some of what I described at some point during the day.  Probably most days.

This isn’t healthy.  This alone, regardless of what you eat can lead to dis-ease and illness.  I’m here to tell you that you can calm down and it all begins very simply.

Here’s a simple technique you can use to calm down instantly.

BREATHE

I know you’re like, is that it?   I breathe all the time.  But I want you to become AWARE of your breath.  At that moment when you are feeling most stressed, check in with your body.  I bet you feel tension in your stomach, lungs, shoulders.   You may even notice that you’re holding your breath.  And, if you are breathing, you’re probably breathing through your mouth.

Well this actually leads to MORE stress and anxiety and here’s why:

Your lungs take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide.  When you take shallow breathes through your mouth the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide is thrown off.  Insufficient oxygen in your body causes your blood vessels and cells to constrict.  Your brain is most effected by this.  Your sympathetic nervous system (or your fight or flight response) is activated and feelings of tension, irritability, anxiety, and depression can occur.  

Shallow breathing also uses only the top part of your lungs.   This turns on your fight or flight response and brings on all of these negative emotions too.  Deep breathing forces air to the bottom of your lungs.  This process turns on the parasympathetic system which calms the body, relaxes the heart rate, soothes, and relaxes.  

Spiritually, when you stop, breathe, and meditate in a prayerful way, the Power that’s within is activated and your focus can instantly move away from your anxious self.

And that’s so much more productive and HEALING!

I encourage you RIGHT NOW to check in with your breathing.  Are you breathing deeply with your mouth closed?  

Take time to consciously do this for a few minutes per day.   It is vital for your health.  After a while, as stress rises, your automatic response will be to remind yourself to breath.  This may need to happen many times during the day.

By the way, because your mouth needs to be closed while doing this, if you’re in a verbal disagreement, and you take time to stop talking and breathe, it could work wonders!  Try it!

Here’s a FREE Tool

I’d like to share this website I found with you.  It’s a great free tool.  You can choose your scene and take 2, 10, or 20 minutes to breathe and meditate.  You can also allow the soothing sounds to just play as long as you like.  Click here for the link.

What works for you in the moment to calm down?

Reference:  http://www.relaxforsuccess.com/198.html

Elaine King is a Holistic Health Coach.  She works with women who want to make their health a priority.  They understand that being healthy is about more than what they eat.  The connection to their thoughts and inner spirit is of importance as well.  Elaine does individual and group coaching, leads wellness workshops, and speaks for various organizations.  Dowload a free copy of her e-Guide: Six Steps to a Simply Healthy Jumpstart here. 

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